Adam Wong is our featured alumnus for this edition of the NAU Business & Administration Alumni Career Insights Blog. Adam graduated from Northern Arizona University with a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree in Spring 2011. Since graduation, he has advanced his career at TTI Success Insights (TTISI), an organization that researches and applies social and brain science to create a customized suite of behavioral assessments that help organization hire, develop, and retain top talent.

Adam is currently the Vice President of TTISI. In his role, Adam leads the areas of sales, training, customer service, and new products. He “spearheads efforts to further improve TTISI’s technology, which is known for consistently staying ahead of the marketplace, while creating the world’s best science-based assessments and technology.”

When asked which courses helped him prepare for his career, Adam mentioned that all of his BBA courses contributed to his education and preparedness for his career. Three courses did stand out to him, and they were:

• BBA 490c, Strategic Management with Professor Jim Latham
• “I don’t remember the exact course number…[but it was] a course with Dr. Miller-Leister, which I had to present on a topic of my choice. I’ll never forget she gave me 124 out of 125 possible points!”
• BBA 450, Leadership with Professor Stewart Segall

When asked how the BBA program prepared him for his current job, Adam believes the program gave him a general level of comfort and knowledge regarding everyday business terms and applications. “The amount of group work and presenting really helped me prepare for ‘the real world’”. When asked to compare the corporate world to what he learned in school, Adam mentioned, “it’s like comparing night and day.”

Regarding conducting a job search, Adam mentions that he strategically leveraged his internship to reach his current position. With determination and hard work, he sought to leave no doubt in the minds of the organization that he was the right person to hire.

Regarding interviewing, he mentions the following points: “Research the company you’re interviewing with and be able to intelligently speak about the position. Listen extremely well to the questions the interviewer asks, and make sure to answer the question. This sounds obvious, but many people are so nervous that they continue to talk, talk and talk without ever truly answering the interviewer’s question. Lastly, dress accordingly and arrive a few minutes early.”

Regarding networking, Adam emphasizes, “Do it! It’s much easier to get a job when you have an internal advocate. Aside from just networking, TAKE ADVANTAGE OF EVERY OPPORTUNITY. You never know where an opportunity will take you!” Congratulations Adam on your career success and on being our featured NAU Business & Administration alumnus.